Wifi.com.ng, a Nigerian startup established to provide unlimited internet service in Lagos, has secured US$2.1 million as seed funding from several investors, including Y Combinator's Michael Seibel and Gabriel Hammond, Western Technology Investment, Social Capital, Vy Capital, Picus Capital, Ace & Company, Lynett Capital Partners, and Zeno Ventures.
The startup is owned by Tizeti and builds and operates solar-powered towers to provide WiFi services to the SME market, as well as residential areas.
With the funding, the company said it will be able to extend its services across Lagos and other parts of the country. It said it will be doing this with the launch of Xfinity WiFi-like hotspot service. Furthermore, the company is also planning to scale up mobility with the addition of 3,000 new public hotspots across Lagos.
Kendall Ananyi and Ifeanyi Okonkwo, founders of the startup, are alumni of Y Combinator, and said the company was started to address poor internet connectivity in Africa.
Ananyi said, "Today's seed announcement allows us to grow aggressively in the Nigerian market, and we will continue to invest in building out our own solar powered infrastructure, as well as refine and expand our consumer focused product. We aim to 'win Lagos' and then South West and South South Nigeria, with a view to expanding across the West African region over the next 18-24 months."
"Since graduating from Y Combinator, we've licensed spectrum from the Nigerian government and signed an IRU contract with a submarine cable provider to extend the coverage of our unlimited internet service, which will put Tizeti in a stronger position to roll out additional services to more people such as our new Wifi Hotspot Service."
Tizeti said it is building out its network of 35 owned and operated towers, taking advantage of the rapidly decreasing cost of solar panels in the region; providing unlimited internet. Additionally, the company owns a delivery network that facilitates internet connectivity from submarine cables directly to their customers through its solar-powered WiFi towers.
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